Chapter 320
Adjustment to Victory (勝利への調整 Shōri he no Chōsei) is the 320th chapter of manga, Baby Steps. Characters in Order of Appearance Summary Synopsis Apparently, this is the very first time Ei-chan's gotten a chance to break Takuma's service in all the times they'd played against each other, so he tells himself to concentrate on this one point. From the toss, he judges it either a spin or a flat. Then at the moment the ball hits the racket, first the variety of shots, next the course... It's a spin that's wide. The serve clocks in at 196 kph, and it escapes outward. Ei-chan somehow touches it with the frame of his racket but doesn't manage to return it. 40-40. Ei-chan looks frustrated, but Takuma's surprised that his serve had been touched (wasn't an ace). Coach Aoi marvels at Takuma's ability to hit such a fast spin ball that escapes outward. Coach Miura says Takuma's been able to do that much even before, but he's now starting to get it in at the crucial moment. Ei-chan's mom, Coach Aoi and the others exclaim in surprise that Takuma's been hitting that high-level serve ordinarily. The next serve touches the net, so it's a fault. Ei-chan prepares for the second serve, clinging to a sense of relief and internal amazement. He watches the toss and judges it a spin ball. However, its speed is 180 kph and his return is weak, so Takuma's able to put it away. But Ei-chan focuses on having touched Takuma's first serve. Though he continues to concentrate, the next serve is 220 kph and he isn't able to move at all. Ei-chan (?) gives a involuntary half smile. 2-1. But I suppose with all the history between Ei-chan and Takuma, Ei-chan shouldn't be able to break him that easily. Ei-chan starts taking notes. In this game, 5 of Takuma's 8 first serves went in, for a probability of 63% lower than Coach Miura's stated 74%. Because he took break point with that, Ei-chan might say it's referring to the experience of having gotten to break point quite good. He considers it positively as a game where he was able to visualize breaking. The onlookers pay attention to Ei-chan taking notes. Yukichi says he remembers when Ei-chan came to STC. Coach Miura joins him in turning the topic to the game back then. In the middle of that reckless match, Ei-chan had begun meeting the ball a bit, after he started writing his notes that way. Coach Miura says since that time he'd been astounded by Ei-chan's analytical ability and reactions to his excellent vision. After that, Ei-chan gained experience and focus, and probably a lot of data on Takuma as well. He adds that Ei-chan will probably assemble the conditions just to be able to attack that serve next. Therefore, it's not particularly strange that Ei-chan, among those in STC, has been able to match Takuma so much. He thinks even Takuma has understood that. Yukichi then says, "That's why please watch. Because from here on, Aniki will start adjusting to that serve little by little." The match resumes with Ei-chan's service game. Even if he's not able to get an ace, Ei-chan starts making free use of tempo, variety of shots, and mixing his shots. Takuma also starts going for a drawn-out game to decrease the errors from his strokes. Recognizing the excellence of his serving condition today, he becomes more aggressive, continuing to hit serves of around 200 kph, raises the success rate of his first serve close to 70%, and doesn't give Ei-chan a chance to break. The game continues. Both sides hold and the first set enters the 9th game the score apparently stands at 4-4. Takuma takes the point with his seventh ace today. 15-0. Ei-chan remembers he mustn't play as usual today. If he really wants to win, he has to do something...If he wants to overcome Takuma... He switches to a defensive position in front after the first serve. Takuma notices this and thinks Ei-chan has guts and if he starts challenging Ei-chan first... Navigation Category:Volume 34 Category:All-Japan Championship Arc